As many as 50 innocent persons have been killed by cylinder explosions in vehicles in different parts of our country merely in a span of one month. The news has it that there are 300000 vehicles with substandard CNG cylinders plying all over the length and breadth of our country. The fact of the matter is that most of the cylinders are no more usable and some greedy persons who always want to keep their breads buttered on both sides in the trade of transport are still persisting with expired cylinders. With a ban on import of cylinders from India, Brazil and Argentine the risk of cylinder blasts has increased because the transporters whose vehicles have unacceptable and worn out cylinders will not find the new ones in the market and thus will be compelled to have the old cylinders installed in their vehicles. With no new cylinders, the owners of the vehicles will be given welded cylinders by the unscrupulous sellers who already have them in fairly large number. These welded cylinders are an implicit invitation to death by explosion on roads. It will be a prudent decision on the part of the Petroleum Ministry to do away with the ban on imports on cylinders because the manufacturers abroad sell their products with a cast-iron guarantee something which is conspicuously absent in our land. It is the only watertight solution to ensure safety on our roads.
MUBUSHAR ALI SULEHRIA,
Wah Cantt, December 20.